Newport Restaurant Group is not owned by outside investors. It is owned entirely by the people who work there. The company runs 18 restaurants and hospitality venues across Rhode Island and Massachusetts, including The Mooring in Newport, R.I. Every employee is also a part owner — and together they have received $33 million in benefits since the employee stock ownership plan began in 1995.
One of those worker-owners is Andy Staane. He started as a bartender at The Mooring in 2002, as a teenager trying to earn some extra money. Twenty-four years later, he is still in the same role at the same company. But his position has changed in one big way: he is no longer just an employee. He is a part owner, just like all of his coworkers.
How Newport Restaurant Group Became 100% Employee-Owned
The company's story did not start in restaurants. Newport Restaurant Group was founded in 1925 as a fuel oil business. Over time, it sold off its other assets and moved into hospitality. In 1995, it began an employee stock ownership plan, according to Nation's Restaurant News. Since then, the company has become fully owned by its workers.
An employee stock ownership plan, or ESOP, is a way for a company to hand ownership to its staff. Instead of selling shares to outside investors, the company puts ownership into a plan that benefits the employees. At Newport Restaurant Group, that means the people serving food, mixing drinks, and running the venues are the same people who hold the shares.
What $33 Million in Worker Benefits Means
The $33 million figure is the total the company has paid out to its employee-owners since the plan started in 1995. That money does not go to a distant investor or a Wall Street fund. It goes to the staff.
Staane's own words capture the idea behind the model. As he put it, "Nobody else gets the benefit." The people who do the work are the people who gain from the company's success.
- The company owns 18 restaurants and hospitality venues across Rhode Island and Massachusetts.
- It was founded in 1925 as a fuel oil business before moving into hospitality.
- Its employee stock ownership plan began in 1995.
- It is now 100% employee-owned, with no outside shareholders.
- Worker-owners have received $33 million in benefits since 1995.
Why This Employee Ownership Model Stands Out
Newport Restaurant Group is one of the few companies in the country where the shareholders are the employees themselves rather than outside investors. In most restaurant businesses, owners and investors take the profits while staff earn a wage. Here, the staff are the owners.
That structure can change how workers see their jobs. A bartender who stays 24 years at the same company is unusual in an industry known for high turnover. When the person behind the bar also holds a stake in the business, staying longer and caring more starts to make sense.
Our Take: Employee Ownership Deserves More Attention
To put it plainly, the Newport Restaurant Group story is a rare example of a company putting ownership in the hands of the people who actually do the work. The $33 million paid to worker-owners since 1995 is not a publicity stunt. It is money that went to staff instead of outside investors.
In our view, this model is worth watching closely. Restaurant work is often low-paid and unstable, and workers rarely build long careers at one place. Staane's 24 years at The Mooring show what can happen when employees have a real stake. When the company does well, the workers do well — and that is exactly the point.
The bigger lesson is simple. Employee ownership is not just a nice idea. It is a working business model that has lasted for decades. More companies should study how Newport Restaurant Group did it — and ask why more businesses have not followed the same path.
